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Foraging Wild Greens for Miners Lettuce Salad

I am sharing some photos one of my most favorite places on earth. I feel so incredibly blessed every time I step foot into this little oasis, that it just happens to be right outside out back door. Our dogs also love to explore our woodsy backyard with me any chance they get. This hidden away natural habitat on the backside of our property has oak, cedar and Douglas fir trees, wild edible greens (including Miners Lettuce as featured in the recipe below), wild strawberries, Indian plums, wild flowers, and is a popular haven for the local wildlife including elk, deer, coyote, bobcat, and a wide variety of birds.

Above is a photo of our Black Labrador on the hunt for wild game.

Our sweet golden long haired chihuahua can also be seen above tracking scents.

Beautiful (non-edible) wild irises growing in our little sanctuary.

Miners Lettuce can be found growing in the lightly shaded forest and at the base of our larger trees.

Miners Lettuce (Claytonia perfoliata) is pretty easy to identify. You can see how it has a long thin stem and a round disk shaped lettuce leaf at the top. If you harvest them when they are flowering, you will find little white flowers with 5 petals each, grow up and out of the disk. The plant itself doesn’t have very deep roots so I do my best to pick very lightly, snapping off a few stems of lettuce from each plant, and leaving the rest of the plant intact to continue to thrive.

Miners lettuce can be harvested and enjoyed while it’s flowering, but it is recommended to harvest it before the flowers turn to seed.

Miners Lettuce is often called “winter purslane” as it resembles purslane, and it also reminds me of watercress, though I find the flavor a lot more mellow than watercress. This “wild lettuce” tastes quite a bit like spinach with a nice refreshing crunch to it.

Just two cups of miners lettuce has 33% of the daily recommended of Vitamin C, 22% of Vitamin A, and 10% iron per serving. The wild green got its name when early day gold miners relied on it for Vitamin C to fight off scurvy. It is said to have also been a staple in the diet of Native Americans along the west coast. Miners lettuce can be found growing wild from California all the way up to Alaska, and has made appearances along the east coast too. It has also been introduced into the United Kingdom, Cuba, and Australia.

You can also purchase miners lettuce seeds to grow in your own garden. I think it makes a lovely ground cover and who doesn’t love pretty & edible “weeds” that are easy to maintain and highly nutritious!

Miner’s lettuce reminds me of a cross between watercress and spinach and I love the way this toasted sesame vinaigrette enhances it’s flavor. I also like to add in cucumber, green apple, red onion, radish, and top with a sprinkling of toasted sesame seeds.

I never tried Miner’s lettuce. This salad looks outrageously good and I love how nutrient packed it is. All your posts are so beautiful Andrea, and I love the high quality ingredients you are using. I’m pinning, tweeting and stumbling this beautiful salad!

Andrea, what a gorgeous post! Foraging in the woods is so meditative. I don’t think we have Miner’s Lettuce here in Italy – I’ve never seen it, either in the woods or on the table. Which is a pity, because it’s so prettty. I keep coming across your blog because we seem to be sharing on the same link-ups here and there, so… it’s nice to meet you! Best, Angie